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Note:This thesis is part of a research project
submitted in partial fulfillment of the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in the School of
Music. The project also involved the preparation and performance of a recital of music
related to the thesis topic.

A performance guide for pianists to selected keyboard pieces by Jacques Duphly

This
study explores keyboard
compositions by Jacques Duphly, a French Baroque
composer, and investigates the suitability of his pieces for pianists
from a pedagogical and
performance perspective. Some of Duphly’s compositions feature French traditional elements
such
as
style brisé,
ornamentation, and dance genres, while many others indicate a strong Italian
influence. In his last harpsichord volume,
Quatrième livre, Duphly included pre-classical elements
such as the
Alberti
bass.
Historical background is given
in Chapter I, including a biography of the composer, basic
information about the harpsichord and the modern piano, and general recommendations for how
harpsichord music may be adapted to the piano. Chapter II explores issues surrounding the
performance practice of French Baroque compositions, with an emphasis on Duphly’s keyboard
music, such as musical forms, tempo, articulation, rhythmic alteration,
style brisé, ornamentation,
and Baroque dance genres. Chapter III provides a performance guide for pianists
to selected
compositions from Duphly’s four harpsichord collections:
Premier livre
(1744),
Deuxième livre
(1748),
Troisième livre
(1756), and
Quatrième livre
(1768). The performance guide suggests a
tempo for each piece as well as realizations of ornaments
and special effects, fingerings, dynamics,
rhythmic alterations and articulations.

Issue Date:

2018

Publisher:

School of Music, College of Fine and Applied Arts, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign